English, Meet Western
by Xx.LoveIsABlessing.xX
Summary: A second try at this one. Basically the same idea as the first attempt. Ty/Amy
1. Chapter 1

_**Chapter 1**_

Twenty-two high school seniors sat in their seats on a plane owned by their private school, Green Briar Academy. Most of them were excited, whispering to the people seated beside them about the trip they were about to take to Georgia, the first of its kind that GBA had ever done for it's students.

They were going to spend a month on an actual working ranch in Georgia, the Baldwin Ranch. It was located close to the coastline, taking up a large part of land, almost a thousand acres, beside the small town of Darien, Georgia.

Normally, GBA seniors would do things like cruises or going to Europe, but a small group of students had petitioned for this trip, going out into the surrounding towns and getting over two hundred thousand signatures to make their dream senior trip happen. So now, they were getting ready to go to Georgia while their classmates went to France.

All talking ceased as the headmistress, Val Grant, stepped into the plane quarters where they all sat, coming from the cockpit of the plane.

"Before we can leave, I am going to take a role call to be sure that we are all here. Wouldn't want to leave anyone behind, now would we?" She said, her glacial eyes passing over the twenty-two seniors on the plane. They stayed silent, waiting to hear their name called. Val looked down at the role sheet in her hands.

"Tara Abbott."

"Here." Seated between her boyfriend and one of their friends, Tara's sharp blue eyes looked up as her name was called, her blonde bob of hair pulled back into a tiny ponytail at the base of her neck for the flight.

"Samantha Bernard."

Being one of the shorter people on the flight, Samantha leaned out into the aisle beside her seat so she could be seen around the tall boy that sat in the seat ahead of hers, her short blonde hair falling over her ears and her chocolate brown eyes excited as she answered to her name, "I'm here."

"Amy Fleming."

Stormey grey eyes looked away from the window she sat beside so that Amy could look at the headmistress, her long light brown ponytail flicking slightly from the sudden movement of her head, "Here."

"Ashley Grant."

"Right here, mother." Ashley had a sleeping mask pulled down over her green eyes, her blonde hair falling around her shoulders. She'd pulled the curtain over her window to block out the sun while she slept on the flight. She was one of the few students who hadn't wanted the special trip, but had went because of her mother, the headmistress. She blamed Amy that she wasn't on the flight to France at that very moment.

"Mitch Johnson."

"You couldn't leave me behind on this one!" Muddy brown eyes lit up with excitement and mischief, Mitch had short blonde hair and a prankster personality. He grinned at Val from his window seat in front of Amy's. He laughed at the headmistress's response to him.

"If only we could have, Mitch. Daniel Lawson."

Seated in the aisle seat beside Tara, Daniel looked up from a magazine article featuring him and the friend that sat across the aisle from him. His dark brown hair and brown eyes set him apart from the two blondes two his right. "Yes ma'am."

"Soraya Martin."

Curly black hair pulled back into a bun and dark browns eyes full of impatience to be flying, Soraya answered from her seat between her best friend Amy and her boyfriend, "Here!"

"John Mathers."

"Is really missing his horse!" The six foot blonde laughed, his light blue eyes eager and excited. He was one of the students who had a horse to take on the trip. His exclamation earned him several grins from his fellow students, including the two boys on either side of him. He turned in his seat to look back at Tara and Daniel, "I can't be the only one." They grinned at him.

Val sent John a tight smile, "You'll see your horse soon enough. Now, Heather Middleton."

"Right here, Mrs Grant." Heather's blonde hair was hung loose to her shoulders, her blue eyes bored and staring at a magazine in her lap. She sat at the front left seats of the plane beside Ashley.

"Oliver Mills."

"Here." Ocean blue eyes closed and his seat leaned back, the brown haired young man was ready to sleep the whole flight. It would make time pass quicker. He sat in the front seats to the right, taking the aisle seat.

"Chad Nelson."

"Yo!" The hyperness in Chad's coco brown eyes reflected in his exuberant shout as he turned away from his window, where he'd been fixing his spiked brown hair. He grinned mischievously and Val sent him a warning look. Snickering, he grinned at John, who sat to his left.

"Belle Owens."

"Here." The model answered lazily, her jade green eyes lifting from her magazine as she pushed her long dark brown hair back over her shoulders. She sighed and looked back to her magazine after answering, making the two girls to her right roll their eyes at her. In the seat in front of her, Oliver rolled his eyes as well and made a face at the young woman sitting to his right, making her laugh.

"Jake Owens."

Belle's twin brother had to pull his own jade eyes away from looking at the young woman beside Oliver to look at Val and answer, "Here." He had short dark brown hair and a charming smile. At six foot even, he stood taller than Belle's five-seven and was older than her by ten minutes. He sat in the middle seat behind Heather, a guy on either side of him.

"Dawn Pryor."

The young blonde that Jake had been looking at lifted her sky blue eyes from talking to Oliver, her long and wavy hair pulled back into a high ponytail. Being the shortest person on the plane at five foot even, she lifted her hand to make sure she was seen as she answered, "Here."

"Chelsea Rollins."

The hyperactive red head was fighting to pull her thick hair into a ponytail from her seat by the window on Belle's row, her light green eyes narrowed in concentration. She had a bag of sweets in her lap. "Here!"

"Delilah Shepherd."

The black haired cheerleader was taking pity on Chelsea, who sat beside her, and helping her pull her unruly hair into a proper ponytail. Her hazel eyes never left what she was doing as she answered from her seat between Belle and Chelsea, "I'm here."

"Blair Simmons."

With cropped black hair and cinnamon brown eyes, Blair stood out from her classmates somewhat. She looked up from talking with Samantha and Mitch, whom she sat between, "Right here!"

"Grant Smith."

Trying his best to stretch his six-two frame out comfortably in his aisle seat beside Jake, Grant pushed his shaggy dark brown hair from his sapphire blue eyes and smiled at Val, "Right here."

"Ben Stillman."

The blonde young man pulled his blue eyes away from the magazine he was reading to answer from his window seat beside his girlfriend, "I'm here."

"Luke Thompson."

In the window seat beside Jake, Luke was reading a dressage magazine. His eyes were grass green and his hair short and black. He smiled sweetly at the headmistress, "Here."

"Matt Trewin."

"Here." Seated beside his girlfriend and reading the same magazine article as Daniel, which happened to be about the two of them, Matt's brown eyes never left what he was reading, his brown hair of a medium length.

"Blake Williams."

"Best for last." The six-one basketball player joked teasingly as he lifted his forest green eyes from the magazine he was reading, his short black hair neatly spiked. John and Chad sat to his right.

"Now that I'm sure that everyone is here, we can take off." Val said as she turned and walked back towards the cockpit of the plane.

"Finally." Matt muttered and Soraya grinned at him. They were extremely excited to touch down in Georgia and unload their horses.

Mitch leaned forward in his seat to ask Luke, "Do you think she'll be back soon?"

"No, she's gonna stay up at the front just like all the other flights." Luke answered.

"Perfect." Mitch said and stood, pulling his carry-on duffle down and rummaging around in it.

"What are you doing now, Mitch?" Delilah asked with a groan.

"Ah-ha!" Mitch pulled a ping-pong paddle from his bag.

"And what do you plan on doing with that?" Heather demanded, turned in her seat to see what Mitch was doing.

"You'll see." Mitch told her and looked expectantly to Chad, who had also stood to start looking through his carry-on. He pulled out another paddle and a ping-pong ball.

"I know you two don't think you're about to start hitting that ball back and forth." Belle said warningly.

"It's not just us. We brought enough for everyone." Mitch said with a grin, pulling more paddles from his bag. Chad pulled more out of his as well.

"And just what are we supposed to do with them?" Ashley demanded.

"Hit the ball, duh." Mitch said as he started handing out paddles.

Soraya and Amy exchanged grins as they took theirs, wondering how in the world this was going to go.

"We're in a plane, you idiot! You can not play ping-pong in a plane!" Heather nearly shrieked.

Mitch leaned forward over the seat in front of his, causing Luke to shift down in his seat as Mitch tried to get as close to eye level with Ashley and Heather as he could, "Watch me." He said and jerked back, turning his eyes to his partner in crime.

"Ready?" Chad asked with a large grin.

"Bring it on." Mitch answered, smirking.

"Bringing it!" Chad said cheerfully as he pulled back and slammed the ball towards Mitch, who deflected it.

Belle let out a gasp and flung out her paddle when the ball came towards her, sending the ball flying off towards the seat across from her. Grant barely managed to send the ball to the back of the plane before it could hit him from Belle's swing. He let out a breath as Jake laughed beside him.

"Got it!" Grinning, Daniel hit the ball back towards the front.

With an excited grin, Dawn turned in her seat and smacked it back with a laugh.

"Mine!" John leapt up in his seat and smacked the ball, sending it in Luke's direction. Luke easily returned it, but angled his paddle to send the ball towards Jake. Not expecting it, Jake flung up his own paddle to protect his face from the small white projectile, sending it bouncing off of the wall and flying towards Oliver.

"Get it Oliver!" Dawn exclaimed as Oliver swung at the ball. He laughed and sent her a grin as he sent the ball towards Chad.

Belle and Delilah wanted nothing to do with the game and had hunkered down in their seats, holding open magazines protectively over their heads. They exchanged glances and rolled their eyes as Chelsea happily hit the ball when it came her way.

The ping-pong game continued for a good ten minutes before Oliver heard Val returning to check on them and signaled to his fellow students.

Jake snagged the ball from the air and quickly hid it in his seat, along with his paddle. Everyone sat on their paddles as the headmistress appeared through the curtain she'd vanished through earlier. Her eyes scoured over them, narrowing slightly.

"What was that I heard?" She asked.

"What do you mean, ma'am?" Grant asked.

"It sounded as though something was bouncing off the walls back here." Val said.

The students all exchanged fake confused looks.

"We don't know what you're talking about, ma'am. We haven't heard anything like that." Delilah piped up. She may not have actually participated in the ping-pong match, but it had still been a form of entertainment on such a long flight.

"Hm. Well, make sure it stays that way." Val told them before turning back and going back through the curtain.

After waiting a few minutes to ensure that she was indeed gone again, Mitch and Chad took back up the paddles, having to fight a moment with Jake for the ball but finally regaining it when Grant and Luke grabbed the male's arms and restrained him, to which he called them traitors.

The rest of the flight was spent in relative boredom for the students with them either reading magazines or listening to music.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2**_

"Easy boy, easy." Amy soothed as she carefully lead her gelding off of the plane to reach the warm Georgia soil below.

Hyped up and uneasy after the flight, Sundance snorted and pulled on his lead, wanting his hooves on solid ground. His hooves thudded loudly against the metal ramp below him and it only made him tense up that much more. Only his deep trust in Amy kept him from leaping sideways off of the loading ramp.

Once he touched the ground, his tense form relaxed almost instantly and he let out a deep breath, now walking calmly beside his rider as she lead him over to the other horses. They were being allowed to walk them around as they waited for the trailers to come around and pick them up.

Knowing that they were almost to the ranch had Amy's nerves singing with excitement and she glanced over towards the headmistress to take another look at the tall man standing beside her.

Brad Baldwin, owner of Baldwin Ranch, was watching the students and their horses closely as he talked with Val Grant, his dark green eyes moving from one horse and student to another. He had dark brown hair that was currently hidden under a black baseball cap and wore Wrangler jeans with a white button down and black boots. A championship team roping belt buckle gleamed on his black belt.

Amy stopped Sundance and turned him to face Val as the woman called for her students' attention.

"The trailers have arrived to transport the horses. Those of you without horses need to gather your bags and go get onto the bus. Those of you with horses, load up your horses and then get onto the bus." Val ordered.

The students quickly snapped to it, many gathering their things and going on to the bus, getting on and quickly snagging seats for themselves.

Amy patted Sundance's neck as they waited their turn to load up into one of the impeccable trailers that had pulled up.

Of the eleven students that had brought along their own horses, of course Ashley and Heather had to be the first to get their horses loaded up.

Bright Magic, Ashley's ten year old dark bay thoroughbred gelding, was loaded easily. He was so used to being put in and taken out of trailers, it meant nothing to him now.

Next, Heather loaded up her twelve year old dark bay thoroughbred mare, Queen's Diamond. The well bred mare loaded easily and took her place beside Bright Magic in a slant stall, not even batting an eyelash.

The next horse to go into the trailer was Luke's thoroughbred mare, ten year old dark bay American Dream. She shook herself and sighed before loading up into the trailer and taking the third slant stall.

Rounding off the four horse trailer was John's eight year old black thoroughbred gelding, Crazy Eights. With great caution he put each socked hoof into the trailer and playfully butted John's shoulder with his blazed face as he tied the lead. John smiled and patted his neck before hopping out of the trailer and going to get onto the bus with his things as the trailer door was shut and locked.

In the second trailer, Tara had loaded her ten year old hanoverian gelding, Apollo. Sorrel with socks on both front legs, he had a snip on his nose to finish off his markings. He'd loaded as calmly and quietly as ever, soon looking for his constant travel companion, What Luck, or Red as Ben called his eight year old sorrel gelding. Red loaded up alongside his friend and yawned. Being in a trailer was no big deal to him.

Daniel loaded his horse next. Clicker, a ten year old oldenburg gelding. Sorrel in color, he had no socks or other white markings. On his left hip was his Oldenburg brand, marking him a purebred oldenburg horse. The horse pinned his ears at being confined in a trailer, but a soothing word from Daniel had him loaded and standing quietly, if not a little unhappily, in his slanted stall.

To finish off the second trailer, Matt loaded up his mount Saga, a twelve year old bay hanoverian mare. She had a sock on her left hind leg and a blaze on her pretty face. She stood quietly in her stall as the trailer door was shut and locked.

The third trailer started off with Prince, Soraya's six year old standardbred gelding. The bay had stockings on his back legs and a star on his forehead, but no other white on him. His calm temperment shown through as he calmly loaded for his owner.

The first to join Prince in the third trailer was Dawn's horse, Lover Boy. At seven years old, the hyper dapple grey thoroughbred fit his owner well. He followed her in lovingly, nuzzling her shoulder as she lead him carefully into the slanted stall beside Prince.

Last to load up, and for a good reason, Amy loaded her seven year old buckskin gelding Sundance alongside Lover boy, but with an empty stall in between them. Sundance had been known to have a bad attitude with other horses while trailering and Amy didn't want anything to happen to the adorable grey of Dawn's. As she finished loading Sundance, she could already see friendly Lover Boy trying to reach his head over to Sundance to say hi.

Dawn and Soraya had waited on Amy and as she stepped out of the trailer, they walked beside her as the three of them grabbed their bags and hurried to the waiting bus, eager to be on their way to the ranch. They grimaced when they got onto the bus and saw that every seat had at least on person to it.

"Dawn, saved ya a seat, girl." Chad called out from the back and Dawn raised an eyebrow before venturing back to sit beside him, the seat across being occupied by Jake and Mitch.

Naturally, Soraya went to sit beside Matt, and Amy decided to sit by Chelsea. She grinned as the excitable red head stared out of the window the entire ride to the ranch. After about a thirty minute drive, she gasped and grabbed Amy's shoulder.

"Is that it?" She asked and pointed out of the window.

Leaning over, Amy grinned as they drove up to a tall iron gate, _Baldwin Ranch_ written in iron along the top of it.

"We're here!" Chad called to the rest of the bus and they all stared out of the windows as they drove in through the iron gates and onto the ranch. Fences on either side of the road, each one about two yards off of the dirt road, had cattle and horses grazing contently in them. A few of them would pick up their heads to look at the passing vehicles, but otherwise ignored them.

"Oh, look at the baby cows!" Delilah said as they watched two black angus babies chase one another alongside the fence, quickly veering off to race around on of the cows in the field.

"We're supposed to be assigned horses when we get here, aren't we?" Grant asked as he looked out of the window.

"Oh, I hope I get that one!" Chelsea excitedly pointed to a large bay and white paint that was grazing in the pasture to the right of the bus.

Everyone grinned excitedly as the bus pulled to a stop outside of a large log house. It was easily two stories and long, easily dwarfing many homes they'd seen. A large front porch covered the front of it, five steps leading up onto the porch. To one side stood a large metal pavillion; it had five vehicles parked under it; three trucks and two cars.

The doors to the bus opened and the students eagerly gathered their possessions and rushed off of the bus, eager to look around the ranch.

"Oh wow, look at that!" Delilah pointed to a large pond in the pasture to the right of the house. It was big enough to have a covered dock going out into it and a large sprinkler in the center of it shot water up a good ten feet at least. As the students watched, a fish jumped to catch a bug as it flew over the water.

"Welcome to Baldwin Ranch!"

The students all jumped at the booming male voice and turned to see Brad Baldwin standing beside the bus, a broad grin on his face.

"Later if any of you are up for it we can go out to the pond and fish." He offered and a few of the guys grinned eagerly at the prospect. Brad turned to the woman who had come to stand beside him, dressed in a pair of jeans and boots with a simple white t-shirt, "This is my wife, Karen. We're very excited to have you kids here for the time you're going to be here. Hopefully we can make your stay the trip of a lifetime. Now, you're horses have been taken down to the stables to be unloaded, we figured you would like to do that yourselves so if you'll just follow me, we'll head down there."

"You can leave your things here, some of the stable hands and I will take them to the two bunkhouses that you will be using while you stay here." Karen told them and they nodded, putting their luggage down and eagerly following behind Brad.

They took a trail that went around to the back of the house and he lead them down to a large, modern style horse barn. The stall doors were half doors, with the top half pinned open so that horses could look over the half door and out into the yard. The overhanging stretched out a good seven feet from the stalls, providing shade and covering. Both sides of the barn were like this, each side having a total of ten stalls.

"You're horses will be kept here. We don't use these stalls often, the horses prefer being out in the pasture, but I'm sure your horses will find them homey for their stay here. We'll let you decide which stalls you'd like to use and on which side you'd like to keep your horse." Brad said as the three trailers carefully backed towards the barn, each one side by side.

Amy had already decided to have Sundance on the backside of the barn so he could look out over the rolling pasture beyond it as she walked over to the trailer to unload him.

He gave her a grumpy look as the trailer door was opened and he was able to see her. From inside, Lover Boy gave a welcoming whinny as he looked for Dawn.

As the horses were quickly unloaded, Amy lead Sundance around to the otherside of the barn, freezing in her tracks at the tall young man that came out of the end stall.

Dressed in jeans and boots with a white t-shirt on, he had a camouflage baseball cap pulled down over dark brown hair and a bucket of soapy water in his right hand, a black lunchbox like bag hanging from a long strap over his right shoulder. He looked towards her and her eyes met emerald green orbs.

The two just stood there for a second, staring at one another as if in shock before Sundance broke whatever spell they were under by shoving Amy with his nose, impatient to have his halter off and be able to relax.

A broad grin came to the boys face, "You must be one of the students coming to stay awhile." His voice was just deep enough and had a soothing southern drawl to it.

"Yeah, I'm Amy Fleming, and you are?" Amy asked curiously.

The boy walked up to her and offered his hand, "Ty Baldwin."

"Oh! You're Mr and Mrs Baldwin's son?" Amy asked in alarm as she shook his head. Now that she looked, she could easily see that he was a Baldwin, especially by his eyes.

"You may as well call them Brad and Karen, they don't like all the 'Mr and Mrs' stuff." Ty said with a laugh. He looked to Sundance, "Do you know what stall you want to put your horse in?"

"I was just going to put him in one of the end ones." Amy said. She felt heat rise to her cheeks as Ty finished appraising Sundance with his eyes and turned the emerald orbs back to hers.

"Is this one okay?" Ty motioned to the stall to his left, the third along the backside of the barn.

"Sure." Amy said and looked around Ty curiously as she noticed a horse looking out over the stall that Ty had come out of. He followed her gaze.

"That's Drummer. He's having to be put in a stall because he's cut his leg pretty good so I have to treat it everyday and it's just easier to monitor with him stuck in a stall instead of out on the land." Ty explained and the dun pulled his head back into the stall with a snort, making Ty laugh. "As you can see, he doesn't agree with me."

Amy smiled, "I don't suppose he would if he's used to roaming."

Ty pulled the stall door open for her and she lead Sundance inside, pleased to see that there was a full haynet and bucket of water waiting for him. She slipped off his halter and he eagerly went to the haynet. Ty pulled the door open enough to let her out before shutting and locking it back.

They both looked as Dawn and Soraya came around the side of the barn, both freezing at the sight of Ty. They quickly exchanged glances and Ty looked to Amy with a raised eyebrow.

"So, just so I'm clear, how many of you are there on this trip?"


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter 3**_

"Okay, well, it's nice to meet ya'll." Ty said with a small grin as he adjusted his cap after everyone had introduced themselves and the ones with horses had introduced their horses. To say he'd been surprised about the number of students that had come on the trip, and the number of them that he personally had been assigned to match horses to by his father, was an understatement. His mind was already in overdrive trying to assess the character and personalities of the students without horses so that he could pair them with horses they'd be able to get along with.

_'Of course he woud assign the job to me alone. I'm just so good at reading people apparently.' _He thought with a mental groan.

Amy had watched her fellow students', particularly the girls, reactions closely when they'd seen Ty. She already knew that Ashley and Belle had already set their sights on the six-one cowboy. Heather would secretly want him but not want to make that known to Ashley, Delilah had given him an appraisal but had quickly dismissed him; she had been in a relationship with a track runner for the past three years and everyone was sure they would soon be engaged. Chelsea would think Ty was cute but avoid showing that she thought that for fear of Ashley's wrath. Dawn hadn't batted an eyelash, having grown up around cowboys with her family. Samantha had raised an eyebrow but the gymnast had quickly decided Ty wasn't her type. Blair had seemed like she might show a bit of interest.

As for her own friends, Tara and Soraya had for some reason looked to Amy and grinned at her.

The boys had all had basically the same reaction; another male to try and compete with. Except Jake. Amy had actually seen his jaw tighten and his eyes narrow when Ty had introduced himself, though she had no clue why.

"So, how about I show ya'll where you'll be staying before we do anything else? I'm sure ya'll are tired and it's getting close to feed time anyway so I need to get on that." Ty suggested. He was relieved when they all agreed. He started walking and motioned for them to follow him.

Amy rolled her eyes as immediately Belle and Ashley were on either side of him, trying to get his attention.

"Poor guy, they're going to rip him in two." Soraya muttered as they walked, having fallen into step beside Amy, Tara on the otherside of her.

"He has no idea what trouble he's in." Tara agreed.

Amy sighed, "We can only hope he doesn't fall for their tricks."

"Yeah. Watch out, they're like venus fly traps!" Soraya hissed quietly, making Amy and Tara laugh.

"What's so funny back there?" Ashley snapped as Ty stopped to look back at the laughing group of three in amusement.

"A lot of things, Ashley. Do you really want me to name them all off?" Amy called back with a sweet smile on her face. Ashley glared at her but kept walking as Ty started again.

They soon reached two large log bunkhouses, a few yards apart.

Ty pointed to the one on the right, "That's the girls. Guys, you're all in the other one. All your stuff has been brought down, you can choose bunks yourself. Ya'll go ahead and relax a while and get sorted out, I'll come get you when it's time for supper."

They started shuffling into the two bunkhouses, getting inside and seeing ten sets of bunk beds, five along each wall. Towards the front of the bunkhouses a table held a TV and in front of it was a coffee table with a couch, a recliner to the left of the couch and a none reclining sofa seat to the right. To the left of the door was a brick fireplace, unlit. To the far left of the room when you walked inside was the bathroom.

Walking inside, the students saw that to the back of each bunkhouse, a dining table was to the left and along the right back wall was a counter with a sink and microwave, cabinets above it. At the right end of the counter was a refridgerator and at the left end was an oven. The floors were hardwood and the walls looked to be cedar.

"This is nice." Soraya commented as she went over to where the luggage had been placed and grabbed her bags. She went over to the bunk bed cosest to the door on the left side and grabbed the bottom bunk, leaving the top bunk for Amy.

The bed beside theirs was quickly taken up by Dawn on top and Tara on bottom.

The third bed on the left was taken when Samantha took top and let Chelsea have bottom after Chelsea dramatically explained how she would roll off in her sleep.

"Freaking Drama actress." Samantha muttered as she climbed to the top bunk and Chelsea laughed and did a small bow, making Samantha laugh.

"Oh no you don't, Belle. That's my bed."

Amy looked over to see Ashley going head to head with Belle over bed six, the one closest to the bathroom and first bed on the right side of the room.

"No, I'm afraid it's not, Ashley. I was here first, and my possessions will be taking the top bunk. Bunk seven is open, you can have that one." With that, Belle turned her back to the furious blonde and started to go through her suitcases, no doubt picking out something that would be sure to catch Ty's attention the next time she saw him.

Fuming, Ashley grabbed her suitcase and stormed to the last bunk on the right side, bunk ten, with Heather right behind her. Ashley took top and made Heather take bottom.

Amy shook her head; if there was anyone who could override Ashley, it would be Belle, the self-proclaimed model.

Delilah and Blair chose to share bunk seven with Delilah taking top and Blair taking the bottom.

In the boys' bunkhouse, Jake had quickly claimed bunk one, chosing it because it was closest to the TV. He put his duffel on the bottom bunk and happily stretched out on the top, eager to relax and think.

"Call this one! Heck yeah, closest to the fridge!" Mitch called triumphantly as he put his things on the top bunk of bunk ten. His normal partner in crime, Chad, ended up taking bunk five, the bunk across from him, and the two shared conspirators' grins.

Matt and Daniel, the only two to share a bunk, chose bunk two and Matt took the top.

Oliver decided to take bunk three, but took the bottom bunk and put his possessions on the top bunk. Across from him at bunk eight, Grant was making himself at home on the top bunk, yawning widely as he did so.

Luke took bunk four and Ben took bunk six, both of them taking the top bunk and leaving the bottom with their possessions. John took bunk seven but took the bottom bunk. Blake settled with bunk nine.

"If you two do anything to me in my sleep, I will make sure both of you barely live to regret it." He warned Mitch and Chad as he climbed to the top bunk to relax.

Mitch and Chad simply grinned at him.

All eleven young men quickly looked to the door of the bunkhouse as it opened and Ty walked in, a notebook and pen in his hand.

"So, I've been assigned to getting you each partnered up with a horse. Before I can do that, I need to know just a few basic things on each of you." He said as he went over to the living room area of the bunkhouse and sat on the recliner.

"What do you need to know?" Jake asked, having sat up in his bunk.

From his bunk, Ben could clearly see a frost enter Jake's eyes and it made him raise an eyebrow in curiosity. He'd never known Jake to be hostile to a perfect stranger before.

"Just things like have you ever ridden a horse before, do you have any basic horse experience, blah blah blah, that sort of thing." Ty said and got a few chuckles from the guys around him. "So, have any of you, besides the one's with horses of course, ridden?"

"Dang. He guessed what I was gonna do." Luke whispered to John and the blonde male grinned at him.

_**~EMW~**_

_'"You're the best at reading people, mathching these kids to horses will be no problem for you". Yeah, thanks Dad. Ugh.'_

It was almost two hours later before Ty was heading over to the girls' bunkhouse to ask them the questions he'd had to ask the boys. He already had a few matches made in his mind for the guys, but now he needed to work on the girls. He knocked first, not wanting to walk in on anyone changing, and went in after hearing an all clear from one of the girls. As soon as he walked in, he winced at the almost predatory eyes that landed on him, those of Belle and Ashley.

"So, for those of you without your own horses, I've been assigned the job of matching you up with the horses that we have here. I'm going to do that based on your personalities. All I have to do is ask each of you a few questions and then I'll go make the matches." He explained as he went over to the recliner and sat down, opening his notebook to a fresh page. Immediatly Belle was seating herself on the couch, as close to him as she could get and giving him the sexiest smile she could.

_'Here we go.' _Ty thought warily and started into his questions, hoping to get this over with quickly so he could get away for awhile. He was already planning on taking his own horse out on a trail ride to clear his head and help him think on the matchings.

As he asked the girls questions one by one, he would glance around at the other girls to see what they were doing, and to try and get a better grasp on the personalities of the ones he was having to pair with horses. His eyes landed on a little pow-wow going on between Amy and three girls who had introduced themselves as Soraya, Tara, and Dawn. He couldn't help but wonder what that was about, especially when every so often as he was glancing at them, he'd do it just in time to see them quickly look away from him.

The girls took even longer to talk to than the guys, almost three hours, and Ty was more than happy to leave when he was finally able to do so.

"I'll have your horses for you by morning so you can get started enjoying the ranch life." He told them before adding a mental sarcastic remark, _'Not that several of you will.'_

Shaking his head at himself as he left, Ty sighed. Since when was he such a negative person? He could only blame it on the responsibility hovering over his head and how at lot was at stake because of it. If he put one of them on the wrong horse and they got hurt it was on his head and with how some of them acted he knew they wouldn't just dust off and let a fall go. Oh no, they'd make sure to make him, and more than likely his family and their ranch, pay.

Going over to the shed they stored the tack in, Ty grabbed his tack and a grooming kit and went out to the pasture to the left of the house, giving a whistle as he went.

The answering whinny came from a large dun stallion who had black legs, mane, tail, and a black head, along with the thick dorsal stripe along his back. Soon the mass of muscle and fur was standing beside Ty, wondering why he seemed so tense and frustrated.

"Those students came in today, Hawk, and they're already stressing me out. Why my father had to let so many of them come is beyond me." Ty muttered as he set down his tack and started to work grooming out the smooth coat of his six year old horse, Baldwin's Hawk. The sixteen hand quarter horse looked at him from sympathetic brown eyes and didn't pull any of his usual antics as Ty lifted his hooves to pick them out.

"Some of them have absolutely no idea what they're in for, I can promise you that. I don't even know why they came." Ty went on as he worked, ranting to clear some of his stress. "Some of these girls, and some of the guys too for that matter, look like they've never touched dirt in their life. What am I supposed to do if they have absolutely no horsemanship in them whatsoever? It's not something you just gain from being around horses. There are some people who are around horses their whole lives and never pick up horsemanship."

Hawk listened dutifully, every now and again adding a mental comment himself off of what Ty was telling him.

_'He seems so aggravated. I've never seen him like this.' _Hawk thought as Ty finished with his hooves and put up the grooming kit, tossing it beside the fence to pick up after his ride. He tacked up quickly and was soon swinging into the saddle, manuevering Hawk so that he could open the gate and slip through it.

"Help me clear my head, boy." Ty whispered as he jogged the stallion out onto a trail, letting him warm up until they came to a straight stretch, then he gave him his head and let him run.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter 4**_

Ty and Hawk didn't get back until dinner was almost over with. He took his time cooling down Hawk and grooming him before he could delay it no longer. Gathering his tack and the grooming kit, he took it all back to the shed and locked it up before heading up to the main house and going inside, walking down the hard wood floored hallway until he reached the dining room.

"Ty's here, maybe now Belle will quit whining over how he's not going to see her outfit." Samantha whispered to Chelsea, whom she was sitting by beside a window in the dining room, and both girls shared a small giggle before watching Ty from the corner of their eye.

Karen and Brad watched their son closely, seeing the fatigue in his emerald green eyes. It made Karen send her husband a look.

She'd told Brad that Ty, at only nineteen years old, may have been too young to take on a such a burden as he'd been given now. Sure, he'd helped assign horses to ranch visitors since he was fifteen. But the most he'd ever had to assign was four at a time. Now he had to assign eleven to a group of high schoolers who honestly looked to know absolutely nothing about horses. And the fact that Ty would have to teach them to ride himself, and take them on trail rides, was only adding to his stress. He'd taken groups on trail rides, sure, but he'd never taught so many or lead so many on his own. All this, plus his everyday chores.

Karen knew Ty could do it, but she hated stressing him out so badly at such a young age.

"You have a plate in the microwave, sweetie." She told him as he came over and tiredly plopped down in the seat beside her.

"I'll get it in a moment, thanks Mom." He said and yawned.

"Give Hawk a good run?" Brad asked.

"Oh yeah. We went about a mile out and just rode for a while." Ty said.

"He must have enjoyed that." Karen noted and Ty nodded with a smile.

"Yeah, I need to get him out more. I'll get the chance with the students here, I guess." Ty said.

"Don't forget the other horses." Brad pointed out and Ty sighed.

"I know." He muttered and forced himself to his feet to go get his plate of supper. He was starving and didn't want to think about all the work he'd have to do the next day. Warming his plate up, he then took it back into the dining room and raised an eyebrow when he saw that Belle was now sitting at the table, talking to his parents. He really didn't feel like dealing with her, or anyone else for that matter, so he took the plate to his room to eat, not noticing the pouting look Belle got when he left the room.

Amy, who'd been sitting by a window with Soraya, Tara, and Dawn, saw Ty leave and raised an eyebrow at the expression on his face. It was a mixture of annoyance and fatigue.

"Whoa, he didn't look very happy." Soraya whispered.

"No he didn't. I hope us being here isn't bothering him." Dawn said quietly, the thought of getting on someone's nerves enough to make her tender heart uncomfortable.

"I think Belle did it. He was fine until he came back in here to find her at the table." Tara pointed out, whispering.

"It's only going to get worse for him, especially when Ashley throws herself into the mix. Poor guy." Soraya sighed.

"Yep, he's in for it." Tara agreed.

Amy and Dawn exchanged glances and shared a grimace for Ty's sake.

_**EMW**_

After everyone had said their good nights and went back to the bunkhouses, the fight over who got to use the bathroom first (Ashley beating Belle this time) got so bad that Amy and Soraya went to the sink in the kitchenette to brush their teeth and wash their faces, soon followed by Tara and Dawn, then Blair and Chelsea as the other girls took turns in the bathroom.

"How are we going to work out a shower schedule? We really have to do that." Delilah said as she finally got her turn in the bathroom.

"We can do that in the morning. First one up gets first shower." Amy said.

"And no longer than ten minutes each in the shower!" Soraya added.

Everyone muttered their agreement, though it took a moment for Belle or Ashley to agree, and soon all the girls were settling into their bunks to go to bed.

Amy nestled into her pillow and yawned, her thoughts drifting to Ty as she tried to go to sleep. She really hoped they weren't causing him too much trouble by being there.

As she drifted off to sleep, Amy decided to do what she could to help Ty and make things easier on him.

_**EMW**_

Amy was the first to wake up the next morning and was quick to gather her things and lock herself in the bathroom before anyone else could wake up. She sent a silent thank you prayer up as she stripped down and set the water in the shower. She let it warm before climbing inside.

_'I wonder what we'll be doing today. Hopefully something that'll help out the ranch.' _Amy thought as she quickly lathered soap onto her tanned flesh and stepped under the water to rinse off. She washed her hair in seconds and shaved faster than she ever had in her life, managing to not cut herself somehow. Clean and refreshed, she turned off the water and grabbed her towel, drying in the shower before stepping out onto the plush bathroom rug beside the shower.

She dressed in clean clothes quickly and brushed her teeth before stepping out, her hair wrapped in her towel.

Dawn was awake and gratefully slipped into the bathroom when Amy came out.

Looking at the clock on her cell phone, Amy was surprised, and proud, to see that she'd gotten her whole morning routine done in ten minutes exactly. She grinned and flipped her hair over, towel drying it as best she could before pulling a brush through it and applying a light layer of makeup to her features; lip gloss, mascara, and eyeliner only.

Soon Dawn was out of the bathroom and Tara was slipping in, Soraya patiently waiting her turn.

So far just the four of them were awake as the sun started to come up on the horizon.

Dawn was pulling on her socks and boots as Amy slipped out of the bunkhouse to go to Sundance, pausing a second to wait for Dawn before of them set off for the stable together, eager to check on their horses. They reached the barn just as Ty did and the three of them all froze, Ty staring at the girls and they staring back, before he sighed and sent them a small smile.

"I'm sorry I didn't stay downstairs for dinner, I just couldn't think with so many people around and I needed to get the matchings done." Ty told them as the three of them started walking to the backside of the stable.

"Are you alright? You looked annoyed." Dawn asked him and he winced.

"I was, I'm sorry. Not with anyone in particular, just at all the work that's going to be on me the next couple of weeks." Ty answered honestly.

"We're not making things harder on you by being here, are we?" Amy asked.

Ty bit his lower lip, "Ya'll are a little bit, but it's fine. This is just something I have to get used to if I'm going to take over the ranch someday."

"Well if there's any way that we could help take some stress off of you, please tell us. We'd love to help." Amy told him, reaching out and putting a hand on his arm.

He looked at her hand a moment before smiling at her gratefully, "Thanks. I really appreciate it."

"Is there anything we could do to help this morning?" Dawn asked as she moved over to Lover Boy, who was eagerly stretching his head out of her. She gave Ty and Amy a knowing glance over her shoulder.

"Actually yes. If ya'll could please help me bring up a few horses, I'd really appreciate it." Ty answered and sent Dawn a grateful look when she grinned at the idea.

"Just tell us which ones." She said and looked excitedly to Amy, who laughed and nodded.

"I have a list of horses here that I need to catch, so if you could follow me to the tack shed we'll grab their halters and head into the pastures." Ty said and the girls followed him to the shed they'd stored their tack in the day before.

"This is pretty big to be called a shed." Dawn noted as they walked into the long building and Ty grinned at her.

"Well we weren't sure what else to call it." He said and shrugged, grabbing up a couple of halters and reading the names on them before handing them back to the girls. Soon they were holding eleven halters and Ty was grabbing leads.

"We'll only be able to bring up four at a time but that'll get it done way quicker than me bringing two at a time." Ty said.

"Dawn and I can get two a piece." Amy offered as they stepped out of the tack shed.

"No, that's okay. I don't want to put you with two horses at a time when you don't know them and they don't know you." Ty answered, shutting the door and leading the girls to the back pasture. "We won't be able to put all of them in stalls so we're going to put the hard to catch ones in them." He opened the gate and let them in, then shut the gate back and reached for the halters, grabbing four randomly and tossing the others by the fence, along with all but four of the lead ropes. Then he read the names on the halters he'd grabbed.

He handed on to Amy, "This one goes on Duster, he's a sorrel morgan gelding and this one," he handed a halter to Dawn, "Goes on a cremello quarter horse mare named Cream. They should come up to their names being called."

"Which two are you getting?" Dawn asked.

"Cash, a paint gelding, and Titan, a thoroughbred." Ty answered before giving a long whistle.

Soon the sound of hooves running towards them could be heard, coming from the back of the large pasture.

"How big is this pasture?" Amy asked out of curiosity.

"This one was cut off at seven acres. It's like a gateway to the rest of the land and we use it for a holding pen for some of the horses." Ty answered.

"Big holding pen." Dawn noted.

Ty grinned at her, "Yeah, but it doesn't make them hard to catch. They like people."

Soon, a herd of about twenty horses could be seen rushing towards them, all of various breeds and colors. They came to a halt a few yards away and eyed the two girls curiously.

"Cream, Cash, Duster, Titan." Ty said each name with authority and Amy and Dawn were able to pick out the four horses by the way they reacted to their names. They let Ty take the lead as they approached the horses.

Cream, the mare that Dawn was to catch, stepped out first to sniff the two new girls and Dawn was able to slip on her halter easily, snapping the lead that Ty handed her to the snap and leading Cream towards the gate to be out of the way and wait on Amy and Ty.

Duster, the gelding that Amy had the halter to, had a star and snip on his pretty face and was watching her as she walked up to him. She let him sniff her palm before she slipped on his halter and lead him to the gate with Dawn.

Ty soon came up, in his left hand the lead rope on Cash's halter and in his right hand the lead on Titan.

Cash was a black and white tobiano, lots of black on him, while Titan was a dark bay with a blaze on his face. He stood a full hand taller than Cash but his deep brown eyes were gentle when he pricked his ears at Amy and Dawn.

Amy opened the gate and lead Duster through, while Dawn let Ty go through next before following with Cream and shutting the gate behind them.

"Can you go put Cream in stall eight on the frontside of the stable while I get these three moved into a holding pasture with my horse?" Ty asked Dawn, who nodded and clicked to Cream to get her going towards the stable. Ty watched them go a moment, knowing Dawn could handle Cream but wanting to make sure the mare didn't pull anything, before nodding to Amy and leading Cash and Titan on. She followed a few yards behind with Duster.

"Who is that?" Amy gasped as they reached the pasture they were putting the three geldings in and a large dun horse lifted its head from grazing, the only one in the field.

"That's Hawk, he's mine. He gets along with geldings really easily but I'd still like to watch a second if you don't mind when we get these three in there." Ty answered as he opened the gate and Hawk came jogging over eagerly, ears pricked forward.

"He's a stallion I take it?" Amy asked as she shut the gate behind her and Duster.

"Yeah. You can leave Duster's halter on him, we'll be back for him once everyone's up and around." Ty said as he unclipped the leads from Cash and Titan's halters and sent them away from him.

Amy and Ty stepped back to the gate to watch as Duster and Hawk investigated each other first, Titan and Cash standing back to watch.

Ten minutes went by and the four horses settled down to graze, though Hawk kept a small distance from the geldings.

"They'll be alright. Let's go finish rounding up." Ty said quietly and let Amy out of the pasture first before following her out. As they'd waited, he'd carefully wound up the three leads and now clipped them the fence to be there when they came back for the horses.

Seeing Ty and Amy leaving, Hawk threw up his head and whinnied, ears pricked and eyes on his rider. Ty looked over his shoulder at him and lifted a hand in a wave, signalling to Hawk that he'd be back.

Snorting, Hawk lowered his head back to graze, _'Dang human. Bring in three geldings and then leave. He's lucky I'm not like my father.'_

Dawn was waiting for them outside the fence to the back pasture, scratching the necks of some of the horses who had come up to investigate her, when Ty and Amy got back.

"Well, aren't you just a natural." Ty teased her as she walked away from the horses and they followed her along the fence.

Dawn grinned at him, "I grew up on a ranch in Texas, I know horses."

"You grew up in Texas and ride English?" Ty asked curiously as he let Amy and Dawn walk into the pasture first before entering himself and shutting the gate.

"Yep. My family raises quarter horses, too. Ever heard of Daybreak Ranch?" Dawn asked him.

Ty's eyes widened, "One of the largest ranches in the U.S., right behind our ranch."

"That's right. That's all my family's." Dawn said proudly.

"Well, I'd love to hear later how you go caught up in English riding after we get these horses caught up." Ty said as he bent down and grabbed four more halters.

"Sure." Dawn said as he handed her one, "Who's this one to?"

"You have Sugar Plum. She's a palomino quarter horse, she's got a blaze and socks on her left legs. Amy, you've got Olivia, a bay Tennessee walker. She has a blaze, too." Ty said as he handed Amy a halter and lead.

"And you have?" Amy asked curiously as the horses drew closer to them.

"I've got Twister and Brute. Twister is a grey quarter horse with a bald face and four socks, Brute is a sorrel saddlebred with a snip." Ty answered as he walked over to a grey gelding.

It was easy enough for Amy and Dawn to catch Sugar Plum and Olivia, the two being very sweet mares. Soon the four horses were being put in stalls in the stable; Sugar Plum in stall seven on the front beside Cream and Brute in stall nine on Cream's right. Olivia and Twister were placed in the two remaining back stalls, Olivia beside Saga in stall eight and Twister in stall nine beside Drummer, who was staring out of his stall eagerly as the other horses were brought up.

"Just three more to go." Ty said as he and the two girls went back to the back pasture.

"Just tell us who to lead." Dawn answered.

"I can grab Pretty Boy, he's a bay thoroughbred with four socks. Dawn, here's the halter for Glitz, she's a bay and white overo paint. Amy, Princess is a bay mustang with a blaze and a sock on her right foreleg." Ty said as he handed over halters and leads.

They were leading the three horses up to the barn when they saw someone standing beside Lover Boy's stall, holding the gelding's attention.

"Jake? What are you doing out here?" Dawn asked as they got closer.

Jake looked over from patting Lover Boy's neck, "I was just coming out to see if you needed any help with big man here."

"Oh, no it's fine. Thanks you, though! We just finished rounding up the horses everyone's going to be paired with." Dawn told him as she lead Glitz around the stable and into the stall on American Dream's right, Sugar Plum's left. Princess went into the stall between Queen's Diamond and Crazy Eights. Lastly, Pretty Boy went into the stall behind Lover Boy's and beside Brute.

"So when do we find out which horse we're paired with?" Jake asked Ty.

Amy frowned when she saw an icyness to Jake's eyes when he looked at Ty. _'Why does he not like Ty? He hasn't done anything to warrant that.' _

Dawn noticed the ice to Jake's eyes also and looked at Amy in shock. Amy only shrugged.

"Everyone will find their horses out at breakfast." Ty answered and Jake nodded silently.

Sensing the dislike from Jake, Ty merely turned and went to do his chores. He had a pretty good idea as to why Jake didn't like him, and he only wished he could tell him that he had nothing to worry about.

_'He'll figure that out on his own in time, I'm sure.' _Ty thought in amusement as Jake and Dawn went to care for Lover Boy and Amy went to Sundance with a glance back at Ty. He caught her eye and motioned to Jake and Dawn with a grin. She grinned back and nodded eagerly.

_'Well, this should be one interesting time.' _Ty thought in amusement as Amy vanished around the stable and he went to get started on the morning feeds.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter 5**_

"You were paired with the horses based on your personality and the horse's, as well as your riding experience. I wanted you to be with an animal that you could get along with, so please tell me if there's anything that comes up that you can't handle." Ty was telling the group of horseless students after breakfast, the eleven of them gathered around the front of the stable and eagerly awaiting their assigned horses.

The students with horses stood with them, curious about who their classmates would be paired with.

"Some of your horses are here in the stable, the other three are out in a field beside the house. Before I introduce you to your horses, there's a few rules. First off, never be around your horses alone. Make sure there's always at least one other person around. These horses are docile, but it's still an animal that most of the time weighs over a half a ton and has a mind of it's own. One mistake is all it could take to set them off. Next, the three of you with the horses in the field? Never go in there without me present. Theres a fourth horse in there and he's my stallion. Stallions can be lethal, they're really hard to predict sometimes. So never go in there without me. Finally, with these horses follow every rule or word of advice. These are expensive animals, and its my job to make sure that not only do you stay safe but them as well. Don't just feed them anything, and if something seems off, let someone know." Ty paused to let his rules sink in before consulting the list in his hand.

The students exchanged eager glances.

"Alright, I'll start off with the horses that are here in the stalls. Delilah, you have Cream. She is an eight year old cremello quarter horse mare. She's a really sweet girl, I'm sure you and her should get along just fine." Ty pointed out Cream to Delilah and the cheerleader's excitement heightened when she saw the pretty mare who's ears had flicked when she'd heard her name.

"Can I pet her or do I need to wait?" Delilah asked Ty.

"Go ahead and start getting to know her, let her smell your palm before you try to touch her. Just watch her and the horses around you. No reason to spook anyone, approach slow." Ty said and Delilah nodded, making her way over to her mare.

Ty smiled softly and looked back down to his list, "Chelsea, I've put you with Sugar Plum, a seven year old palomino quarter horse mare. She's there on Cream's left, you can go see her."

Chelsea sent him a beaming smile and made herself walk over to the mare slowly, not wanting to spook her. She and Delilah sent each other excited smiles as she let Sugar Plum sniff her palm.

"Belle you have the gelding to Cream's right. His name is Brute and he is a sixteen year old sorrel saddlebred." Ty said, motioning to the sorrel beside Cream.

"Brute? That doesn't sound like the name for a horse that a girl like me should be getting on." Belle protested, sending the horse a skeptical look.

"He's an ex-showhorse who won over a million dollars in his career." Ty said and Belle raised an eyebrow, impressed.

"Well, I suppose we could get along." Belle muttered before walking over to an annoyed Brute.

_'You, princess, are not my first choice either. Oh, Ty, you're getting kicked for this later.' _Brute thought, flicking his ears back and stomping a back leg. He'd been brough up from the field to carry around a spoiled brat? Oh he didn't think so!

"Ty, he's acting mad!" Belle gasped and backed up away from the stall, Delilah stepping sideways in alarm.

Ty frowned and walked over to the stall, rolling his eyes when Brute moodily looked his way. He got close enough so Belle wouldn't hear him whisper to the gelding, "Easy boy, just do this for me, okay? I can promise apples for you later."

_'It better be a lot of them.' _Brute thought as he flicked his ears back up and put on a sweet face. He was good at looking good.

"He's a bit tempermental sometimes." Ty told Belle as she took her chance and pressed up to his side, pretending to be afraid of Brute.

"He'll really fit your sister well then." Mitch muttered to Jake, who hid a laugh behind a cough.

Ty showed Belle how to offer her palm to Brute and allow him to accept her before he stepped away and returned to his list. "Now that that's settled-"

_'It's not! You owe me apples!' _Brute mentally interrupted.

"- Jake, I put you with the bay thoroughbred beside Brute. His name is Pretty Boy and he's seven."

Mitch and Chad snickered.

"He fits you already, Jake." John quipped and Jake sent him a playful glare before going over to the stall beside Brute's. He offered his hand to the friendly gelding who eagerly reached out his muzzle to smell him.

_'You're the one who's after that little blonde mare from this morning. Oh, I can help with that!' _The gelding thought eagerly as he lipped Jake's hair, making him laugh.

"Blair, you're with Glitz. She's a nine year old bay overo paint. She's there beside Sugar Plum." Ty said.

Blair grinned as she walked over to the mare, who was watching her curiously from long lashed eyes.

"The last one on this side of the stable, that mare there between Heather and John's horses, is an eleven year old bay mustang named Princess. Mitch, she's with you." Ty said.

Now Jake and Chad burst out laughing while Mitch's jaw hit the floor.

"Don't let her name fool you, she's got plenty of attitude and power to her. She's a mustang, after all." Ty said with a grin.

Keeping his mouth shut, Mitch walked over to the pretty bay mare and soon found himself smiling when she ignored his palm and snuffled his cheek instead.

"How do you like that? I'm such a ladies man, even mares like me!" He laughed.

"You guys can stay around here and get settled with your horses. Just stay out of the stalls. The rest of you, otherside of the stable, please." Ty said and lead the way around the side of the stable.

Jake grinned at Dawn as she walked past, "Didn't you say your horse was a thoroughbred?"

She smiled at him, "Yes he is."

"I know who to go to if I need help, then." Jake joked and Dawn laughed.

"Sure, I'm more than happy to help you and Pretty Boy." She said.

Glancing up, Jake saw Amy and Ty grinning at him and Dawn and he realized that Pretty Boy's breed must have played a part with why he'd been paired with him.

_'I've never needed help getting a girl before, but I sure do appreciate it this time.' _Jake thought as he mouthed 'thank you' to Ty and the other male grinned and nodded before stepping around the side to address the other students.

"Alright, over here we have Olivia and Twister, a mare and a gelding. Samantha, you're with Twister. He's a twelve year old grey quarter horse. Oliver, you're with Olivia. She's a seven year old bay Tennessee walker mare."

Oliver offered no complaints about being paired with a mare as he and Samantha greeted their horses.

"Chad, Blake, Grant, you're paired with the three geldings in the field with my horse. You guys can stay here and get to know each other, we'll just be over at the field." Ty said to Oliver and Samantha as he lead the remaining students towards the pasture.

Amy noticed that Dawn had hung back with Jake and grinned. Hm, so Ty was helping play match maker, how nice.

"Whoa, which one of them is that big reddish yellow horse?" Chad asked once they got closer and Hawk had come over.

"That's my horse, Hawk. He's a dun quarter horse. Amy, you wanna help me grab these guys?" Ty asked and Amy nodded, stepping up and taking Duster's halter when Ty handed it to her. She and he stepped into the pasture and he pushed Hawk back when the stallion came up.

Annoyed, he stomped his hoof and walked away, making Ty shake his head.

"Spoiled brat." He muttered and Amy grinned at him.

The three geldings were easy to catch and they lead them out of the pasture.

"Grant, Amy's holding Duster, a nine year old sorrel morgan. You're with him. Chad, you've got this black and white tobiano gelding here in my left hand. He's a thirteen year old paint and his name is Cash." Ty said.

"Cash, I like that." Chad said with a grin as he walked up to his horse.

"So I'm with this guy?" Blake motioned to Titan and walked up.

"That's right. This is Titan, a fifteen year old dark bay thoroughbred." Ty said as Blake let Titan sniff his palm.

"So what now?" Chad asked.

"Now I give you guys a crash course in riding and we hit the trails." Ty grinned at the looks of excitement that entered the students eyes.


End file.
